About Sirgartan
Sirgartan believes that mental illness should no longer be underestimated and stigmatized.
About Sirgartan
Sirgartan Therapeutics is an early-stage drug development company established in 2020 with the vision to transform the treatment paradigm for OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder) and deliver life-changing medicines for patients with OCD and other related neuropsychiatric disorders. The company’s mission is to identify and develop innovative single or combination treatments for OCD in conjunction with the world-leading neurological research resource provided by the University of Cambridge, UK..
Show MoreSirgartan Therapeutics is an early-stage drug development company established in 2020 with the vision to transform the treatment paradigm for OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder) and deliver life-changing medicines for patients with OCD and other related neuropsychiatric disorders. The company’s mission is to identify and develop innovative single or combination treatments for OCD in conjunction with the world-leading neurological research resource provided by the University of Cambridge, UK.
Sirgartan is also investigating other potential neurological disorder therapies in conjunction with the Cambridge Consulting Network (CCN). These will constitute the pipeline for further studies into mental illnesses, including eating disorders, body dysmorphia and a range of other less recognised, but highly debilitating conditions.
Investment obtained through initial seed-funding has enabled early- stage pre-clinical studies to be carried out by the University of Cambridge. These studies have shown very encouraging results, much to the satisfaction of Professor Trevor Robbins, Chief Scientific Advisor to Sirgartan. This has led to the recent submission of a patent application for the identified therapy and its method of action.
The organisation is now seeking further funding to enable progression into clinical studies in 2023. Please contact us at investors@sigartan.com should you or your organisation have an interest in investing in this opportunity..
The Team
Nick Sireau, PhD (CEO and Co-founder)
- Chair and Co-founder of Orchard, a non-profit focused on accelerating research into OCD and developing new and better treatments for this debilitating mental disorder.
- Chair and CEO of the AKU Society, a non-profit that helps patients with the ultra rare genetic disease Alkaptonuria (AKU, also known as Black Bone Disease).
- Recently co-led DevelopAKUre, an international consortium of clinical trial centres, universities, pharmaceutical companies and patient groups that successfully carried out phase 2 and phase 3 studies of a small molecule treatment for AKU called nitisinone that was authorised by the European Medicines Agency and the European Commission in 2020.
- Chair and Co-founder of Beacon, a non-profit that focuses on all rare diseases.
- Founder of NovAKUre, a biotech owned by the AKU Society.
- Nick holds an MSc in Business Management and PhD in Social Psychology.
Vincenzo Garzya, MBA
(Co-founder and Advisor)
- Head of Business Planning & Operations and Chief of Staff for Data Science and AI at AstraZeneca.
- Over 20 years’ experience across Strategy & Operations, Medical Affairs, Business Development and Project Management within R&D at leading multinational pharmaceutical companies.
- Co-founded Orchard charity, together with Nick Sireau, where he remains a Trustee. Holds an MSc in Organic Chemistry from Bologna University and an MBA in strategic Management from Aston Business School. Honorary Associate of the Cambridge Judge Business School and an inventor on multiple patents.
- Data Analysis for management – London School of Economics (LSE).
- International Accreditation in Project Management Professional (PMP).
Professor Trevor Robbins
(Chief Scientific Advisor)
Professor Robbins works in neuropsychopharmacology and behavioural and cognitive neuroscience. He has strong interests in drug discovery, having consulted for most of the major pharmaceutical companies, and in translational research. As Director of the MRC and Wellcome Trust, he co-funded the Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute (BCNI).
- Co-inventor of CANTAB, a widely-used computerised cognitive test battery which is made available by Cambridge Cognition plc.
- In “top cited in Neuroscience list”
H index >150, citations >70,000 (Web of Science). - Recent accomplishments: Distinguished Research Contribution, American Psychological Association 2011;
Grete Lundbeck Brain Prize 2014;
Wellcome Trust Senior Investigator Award 2014. - Prof Robbins is currently leading a major research study into the neuroscience of OCD at the University of Cambridge.
David Cavalla, PhD
(Executive Chairman)
David Cavalla has 35 years’ experience in various senior scientific and commercial roles within the pharmaceutical industry. He is currently involved with a number of biotech companies at Board level.
- Previously he was the founder and CEO of Arachnova Ltd, a company focused on therapeutic switching; previous affiliations included Glaxo Group Research Ltd and Napp Research Centre.
- He was one of the first advocates of drug repurposing, and has used this strategy to create three first-in-class developmental products to have successfully passed human proof-of-concept clinical stages.
- He frequently contributes articles on pharmaceutical strategy and is on the editorial board of Drug Discovery Today.
- Formerly, he was Chairman of the Society for Medicines Research.
- He obtained a first class degree and PhD from the University of Cambridge and spent two years as a visiting Fellow at the NIMH in Washington, DC.
- He is author and inventor of over 70 published papers and patents.
Dr Anthony Hall
(Chief Medical Officer)
Dr Anthony Hall is Chief Medical Officer at Sirgartan Therapeutics. He graduated from King’s College London with first class joint honours in physiology and pharmacology before going on to study medicine at the Royal Free Hospital. He has over 25 years of drug development with ten years working on rare diseases.
- As CMO at Healx, Tony was responsible for progressing the company’s rare disease drug candidates through the clinic. He also oversaw relationships with regulatory bodies at a global level.
- Prior to that, Tony worked as CMO at Aparito and as Therapeutic Area Head of Orphan Drugs at Mereo BioPharma.
- He previously co-designed the development programme for DevelopAKUre, an FP7-funded project to redevelop nitisinone for the treatment of the rare metabolic disease, alkaptonuria (AKU).
- He is currently Trustee of Beacon for Rare Diseases and a member of the Scientific Advisory Board at the patient group charity Duchenne UK.
- He is also co-editor of The Patient Group Handbook for rare diseases.
Christa van Kan
(Director of Clinical Operations)
Christa van Kan has more than 25 years of experience in managing clinical trials in a broad range of diseases, including many orphan and paediatric indications. She was one of the co-founders and owners of PSR Orphan Experts, a niche CRO. As Director of Clinical Operations, she also acted as a hands-on Project Director, staying in close contact with all relevant stakeholders.
- Since 2020, Christa is providing her expertise and services to small pharma- and biotech-services on a consultancy basis.
- With her experience in vendor-selection and oversight, she plays a crucial role in the successful execution of her client’s clinical trials.
Prof Jon Grant
(OCD Expert and Clinical Advisor)
Jon E. Grant is a Professor of Psychiatry & Behavioral Neuroscience at the University of Chicago where he directs a clinic and research lab on addictive, compulsive and impulsive disorders.
- Author of over 500 peer-reviewed scientific articles, 15 books.
- His research has been supported by NIMH and NIDA.
Julia Jones
(Chief Finance Advisor)
With over 20 years of experience as a finance professional, Julia’s areas of expertise include software implementation and accounting processes, working with notable pharmaceutical clients such as Healx, AMO Pharma and Ventus Medial Ltd.
- Founder and Managing Director of Archangel Accounting Ltd.
- To date Julia has helped secure and manage $350mn of Venture Capital funds and provided IPO support, specialising in biotech and pharmaceutical firms.
- Chartered accountant, formerly at PwC.
Lisa Stone
(Investor Relations Advisor)
Lisa Stone has a strong record as a financial and operational leader, with experiences spanning venture capital, private equity, life sciences and real estate.
- Managing Member at Archangel Accounting Ltd and Principal at ExecHQ.
- Consultant at AMO Pharma Ltd, leveraging her expertise to drive strategic initiatives.
- Former Managing Director at PwC Asset Management Advisory and COO/CFO at JL Development.
- MBA in Finance and Bachelor’s in Accounting.
Ekaterina Malievskaia
(Business Advisor)
Ekaterina received her medical degree from St Petersburg Medical Academy in St Petersburg, Russia, and then moved to the US where she completed her Internal Medicine residency training. She worked in private practice, academic medicine and public health for more than 15 years in the greater New York area.
- She was a Clinical Instructor of Medicine at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, as well as a Research Professor at City University of New York.
- After moving to London in 2011, Ekaterina worked in global health and medical philanthropy, focusing on improving outcomes in maternal and child health.
- She founded Compass Pathways with her husband George Goldsmith in 2016, having experienced at first hand the challenges in accessing evidence-based and effective mental health care for a family member.
Contact Us
Our mission is improving treatment options for OCD
(obsessive-compulsive disorder)
a field which has historically been underfunded
and seen limited innovation.